Disaster Risk Reduction - A Toolkit for Tourism ... - PreventionWeb

ANSAO / Phi Phi Islands are located in Thailand between the large islands of
Phuket and the western Andaman Sea coast of the mainland. There are six islands in
all. The two main islands are administratively part of Krabi province, most of which is
on the mainland. Only one of the islands has permanent residents and the villages on
the island are under administration of ANSAO. ANSAO / Phi Phi Islands are a popular
tourist destination. The islands were devastated by the Indian Ocean tsunami of
December 2004 when practically the entire island’s infrastructure was wiped out.
Redevelopment has however been swift.
The table bellow summarises the relevance of tourism in the local economies.
Overview of key data in three tourism demonstration sites
Destination
Total area
sq km
Population
Number of
hotels
Number of
tourism related
companies
Tourists
arrivals
Tourism %
of the GDP
Kanniyakumari, India 25,89 19,678 75 166 domestic:
1.500.000
international:
60.000
N/A
Phi Phi Islands Thailand 11,12 6,333 51 144 547,000 24.1%
Patong, Thailand 16,4 16,987 104 191 841,000 58.8%
1.4 The APELL process
The APELL programme (Awareness and Preparedness for Emergencies at Local
Level) was born in the 1980s following various chemical accidents. UNEP suggested
a series of measures to help governments, particularly in developing countries, reduce
the occurrence and harmful effects of technological accidents and emergencies. One
of these measures was to institute a programme – the APELL programme – enabling
governments, in cooperation with industry to work with local leaders to identify the
potential hazards in their communities. This programme also developed procedures
to respond to and control emergencies that threaten public health and safety and the
environment.
As an international initiative, the APELL programme was developed in full cooperation
with partners in industry e.g. NGO’s, governments and other international organisations.
In particular, direct support for the APELL programme was received from the
International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA) representing numerous national
associations, multinational corporations, the Governments of Canada, France,
Germany, Sweden, Switzerland and the USA; and from international organisations
such as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and
the European Commission of the European Union (EU) among others.
During the last two decades, the APELL Programme has made efforts to raise
awareness worldwide of the APELL Process, to establish long-lasting
stakeholder partnerships and to implement capacity-building initiatives for support of
local partners, thus strengthening preparedness and response systems in selected
industries and communities throughout the developed and developing world. The
APELL process has been implemented successfully in a number of countries around
the world.
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DISASTER RISK REDUCTION - A toolkit for Tourism Destinations